Sweet Revenge
by Link-of-the-Twilight
Summary: "As a punishment, you'll be my prisoner until that spirit maiden of yours turns up. And let me tell you this one thing: once you are my prisoner, you'll wish you'd never been born!" - Post Skyward Sword fanfic - contains GhiraLink -
1. Chapter 1

**This is a Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword fanfiction. It takes place after Demise's death. **

**Warning: contains slight GhiraLink, violence, character death in the ending**

It was a beautiful day and the sun was shining brightly when Link and Zelda left the Sealed Temple to visit the Kikwi's.

After the imprisoning of Demise, peace had returned to the Faron Woods. The two sky-children had built their house close to the Temple to keep an eye on the Triforce. Two months had passed now since the downfall of the evil and ever since nothing bad had happened.

Impa waved the two goodbye as they left and then entered the Sealed Temple. The Triforce had to be guarded at any time. They knew evil could return earlier than they expected, but they didn't know evil was already here, watching them, and waiting for the right moment to attack…

That evil was called Ghirahim, and this was the moment to attack.

After the old woman had entered the Temple, he left his hiding place and silently followed her inside. Impa was praying in front of the Master Sword, in which Demise, Ghirahim's master, was sealed away. The demon lord could hear her mumbling something about the seal losing strength. The perfect chance for him to free his master and revive him again with the spirit maiden's soul.

Slowly he walked towards Impa. When she heard footsteps, she turned her head. At the first sight of her enemy, she wanted to run away, but she knew she had to protect the sword. But after the imprisoning, she had turned back into her old former self, which meant protecting something wasn't really her thing.

Ghirahim smirked at the sight of the old helpless woman. "Move aside", he said.

"No! I have to protect the sword!"

"If you want me to hurt you, you can say so straightaway…"

Impa set a step back, but it was too late. Ghirahim hardly kicked her aside and she fell flat on the Floor. The Sword Spirit took the blade of evil's bane out of its pedestal and laughed. "Finally I have it! Now that sky-child doesn't stand a chance against me anymore! The goddess will be mine!"

When Impa got back up, Ghirahim had already disappeared. The Sheikah ran out of the Sealed Temple to warn Link and Zelda about what had happened. But when she came out, she saw their house ablaze in flack fire…

In the meantime, Link and Zelda had arrived at the Kikwi's place. Every week they visited the Kikwi's for a talk and some fresh plants. Today, only one Kikwi was present, it was Machi, the Kikwi Link knew best.

"Hello, Machi", Zelda said to the little plant-creature while she took a seat on one of the tree trunks. Machi greeted them with a squeak as Kikwi's usually did. Link sat down next to Zelda.

"Where are the others?" he asked.

"They went to the waterside" Machi said. "The Waterdragon asked us to visit her, because there were problems with the lake. Bucha told me to stay here and guard the place."

"What kind of problems?" Zelda asked.

"She said something was wrong with the water in Lake Floria."

"Maybe I should go and check it out." Link said.

"Also… We have another problem," Machi said, looking a bit worried. "A few days ago, Lopsa got ill after eating leaves from the Great Tree. Bucha forbade us to eat any more of those … And those were my favourite leaves…"

"I think it's best if we go to Faron," Zelda said. "Hopefully she can tell us more about what's going on."

After having said this, Link and Zelda left, and went on their way to the water dragon. After some time, the two arrived at their destination. They could see Faron, or the water dragon as she preferred to be called, floating above the water of the lake. In front of her was a huge bowl filled with water. The two Kikwi's were trying to see what was inside while the Kikwi elder talked to the dragon.

When Link and Zelda came closer, they could hear what the argument was about. "Waterdragon," Link said.

The enormous dragon turned her head towards the two humans. "Oh Link, is it you? The Hero of the Skies?" she asked. "You've arrived just in time."

Link stepped closer to the water. It seemed to be a bit more greenish than it normally was. "What happened to the water?" he asked.

"I think it has been poisoned."

"Poisoned? The entire lake? Who would do such a thing?"

"I don't know. I found out it was poisoned after a few of my Parella folk died. They're now safely stored inside that bowl. Bucha told me one of the Kikwi's got ill after eating leaves. Those leaves must have been poisoned too. I don't know what's happening, but you should watch out what you eat or drink."

"We will" Zelda said. "It's getting quite late, we'd better head back home. Impa might be worried already."

"Visit me again when you've found out what caused this poisoning," the water dragon said.

Link and Zelda left the dragon's throne room and went to the Sealed Temple. Halfway, Impa came running towards them. "Impa, we have a problem", Link said.

"A big problem" Impa corrected.

"You've heard of it already?" Zelda asked.

"How can you be so calm?! This might be the death for us!"

"Calm down Impa, it's just some water! We can go to Skyloft to get –"

"Water? What are you talking about? The problem is that he has returned."

"Who has returned?" Zelda asked anxiously. Impa didn't respond. The two Skyloftians stared at her expectative. "He took the Master Sword" Impa finally said.

Link sighed. "I think I know who you are talking about, but… I thought he was dead…"

"We all did, but apparently, he somehow survived…"

"What do we have to do now?" Zelda whispered.

"He also set your house on fire. I don't know where he went afterwards, but we have to be careful, especially you, Zelda. He will certainly come back and chase after you again. You are still necessary to bring about the revival of his master."

Zelda sighed. "And so the nightmare starts all over again."

Link held her hand. "If that stupid demon lord ever comes too close to you, I'll show him what it's like to be really dead!"

"And how are you going to do that?" Zelda asked. "He stole your sword."

Link grumbled. "I can still crush his skull with my shield"

"You can try" Impa said, "but he'll be more careful this time."

"He won't!" Link snapped. "I know what he's like! He'll laugh at me because I lost my sword, he'll think I have nothing left, he'll challenge me to fight, and then, when he totally doesn't expect me to do anything, I'll crush his skull! He won't get the chance to get close to you, Zelda, no matter how hard he tries, he won't lay his dirty hands on you!"

Zelda stared at Link. "Thank you" she whispered. "

Where are you going to stay the night?" Impa asked.

"The Sealed Temple?" Link proposed.

"Alright. Come with me" Impa said.

The three left and headed to the temple. But they didn't know someone had been watching them all the time…

This time Ghirahim didn't follow the sky-children. He just waited in the tree he was sitting in, staring at the Master Sword. This time he held his master, instead of his master holding him.

It was a weird feeling. Somehow it felt good to be free of servitude, but the demon lord knew it was his duty to free his master and serve him again. If he didn't, his master would break free of his own accord and kill him without any hesitation. Ghirahim stared at the sword of evil's bane. All he needed was the soul of goddess Hylia. Could it be any easier?

Now the sky-child lost his blade, he would be no match for the demon. What was he supposed to do without his weapon? Oh yes, he was going to fight with that silly shield of his. Ghirahim chuckled at the thought. He swung the sword and started laughing even harder.

Unexpectedly, the blade began to flicker and the demon lord almost dropped it down. He stopped swinging and stared at it. He knew what this meant, but he didn't know the Sword Spirit was still in there.

"Master…" the soft robotic voice of Fi began to speak. "You woke the sword from its eternal sleep. These actions might support the Demon King to break the seal. I highly recommend to place it back in its pedestal…"

One word echoed in Ghirahim's head. She called him master. Was a Sword Spirit supposed to be the master of another? He smiled. "That was exactly what I was aiming for."

The female sword spirit popped out of her blade and stared at the male one. "You!" she gasped in surprise. "You were supposed to be dead"

Ghirahim grinned. "You thought I was dead, but did you ever see me die?"

"Place the sword back!" For the first time, there was a different tone in Fi's voice, a tone of anger.

"Are you getting emotional? Oh, but of course you are, having a new master is a big change for you. And especially if you compare me to your previous master, you'd better be happy you have fallen into my hands. It could've been far worse"

"You? My master? Don't be ridiculous"

"You've changed your mind… You chose it yourself, though. You called me 'master'."

"Sword Spirits are equal to each other. One cannot command another. You know that too, Ghirahim."

"Too bad you don't want me to be your master. It could've been fun, though. Let's say I'm your temporary master then. Once the Demon King is back among the living, you can serve him. Of course, you won't make a servant half as good as me." Ghirahim smiled, enjoying every word he spoke.

Fi stared at the demon lord, he could be so full of himself sometimes. "You will never be my master" she said. "Neither will the Demon King or anyone else of your kind. I belong to Link, the Hero of the Skies, and only to him. Now, hand the sword to me."

Ghirahim raised an eyebrow and started laughing. The shrill sound of his laugh made Fi shiver.

"I'd like to see you trying to hold it. But I doubt you will succeed, without any arms!"

Fi knew he was right, and that was what angered her the most. But she had to say something, something that would make him stop laughing, "And I'd like to see you cry when your master takes his revenge for treating him like a Sword Spirit. The way you hold him right now is very humiliating. I hope he'll punish you for doing so."

The demon lord narrowed his eyes, "Demons don't cry." He said without any emotion. That deadly stare was even worse than his laughter.

"Give me the sword," Fi said to break the silence. But Ghirahim didn't respond, he kept staring at Fi. He knew she didn't like this, he could see it in her eyes. It was the first time he could actually see something in her eyes, the first time she showed any emotion. But that didn't give her the right to talk to him like this.

"I'd like to punish you," he started to say, "but I've got better things to do now."

Fi flew towards the demon lord. He pointed the sword at her, "Now, get back into the sword. And that's an order!"

"No, you can't -"

"I said : that's an order! The one who holds the sword is your master! No matter who it is!"

His sudden outburst of anger scared the blue sword spirit. She decided it was best to obey him, even though it was against her own will. But maybe he was right, maybe he was telling her the truth after all.

She flew a little closer to the demon and hid her spirit in the sword. Ghirahim grumbled, and threw the sword to the ground. He jumped out of the tree and started walking around. That stupid Sword Spirit had made him furious. How could she think he was that weak? He would never cry, that he knew for sure, not even if his master told him to. Crying was for humans, weak humans who didn't know any better than to cry and pray to their stupid goddess.

Ghirahim grabbed the sword and smashed it to the wall. He wished that could hurt the Sword Spirit inside, but he knew it wouldn't. The sword was a safe shell for the Spirit. Nothing could hurt her as long as she stayed inside.

And if she really was as smart as the demon thought she was, she would never show her face again as long as he held the sword. He grumbled and made his way to the sealed temple…


	2. Chapter 2

It was past midnight when Zelda woke up. It was as quiet as a mouse but she could have sworn she had heard something. She sat up and peered into the darkness. At the far other side of the Temple, near the huge entrance door, she could see something moving.

"Link?" she whispered.

"Yes Zelda?"

"What is that thing there close to the entrance door? A few seconds ago, it was moving …"

"That's me, Zelda."

"Oh…" Now that her eyes got used to the darkness, she could recognize Link's silhouette, mostly because of the hat he wore all day - and night -.

"But what are you doing there?" she asked quietly.

"I'm guarding the door. Someone has to be here to warn when Ghirahim arrives."

"I can take over if you want me to. You can use some sleep, and I don't want to fall asleep again. I just had a bad dream…"

"I won't sleep either. I tried to, but I couldn't. I was too … scared…" He sighed.

Zelda stared at Impa, who was lying next to her. "At least, one of us seems to be able to get a bit of sleep." She said, giving a nod toward Impa.

"You think," Impa murmured, "I'm trying to rest a bit, I'm not sleeping, I can't sleep now. You two better rest too. These will be tough days. I'm afraid we can't do anything but wait until the demon lord turns up and takes you away, my dear. You'd better enjoy the little time you have left."

Those last words made Zelda shiver. "Is there nothing we can do?" she asked nearly inaudible.

"I wonder what happened to Fi…" Link said to change the subject. He didn't like to see Zelda so desperate. And the worst was the feeling of being useless. Did all his heroic actions really depend on his sword? He still had the other items he'd gathered throughout his quest, but none of them could hurt the demon lord enough to kill him.

"She is inside the Master Sword," Impa replied. "Whether she is still sleeping or not is unknown to us, but it isn't safe. The seal already started to lose strength before the sword left its pedestal. I don't know what caused that, but it isn't normal. The seal was said to be unbreakable for thousands of years, and only a few months have passed since Demise's imprisoning."

"That stupid Ghirahim must have done something!" Link shouted. "Why couldn't he just be dead? All he deserves is to burn in hell!"

"Calm down…" Zelda sighed, "Forget about it … He is alive, and so be it. There is nothing we can do…"

Link felt two hands placed on his shoulders. "Ha Zelda! Don't sneak up behind me like that!"

"Don't be so hard on me…"

Link froze. He could recognize that voice out of thousands. "No… Not you…" he said, shaking with fear and anger.

"Link, what are you saying? Is something wrong with you?" Zelda asked, clearly not knowing who had shown up behind Link.

"Link…" Ghirahim whispered as quietly as possible. "All I'm going to do is take away the little goddess. Be a good boy and stay here. No need to hurt yourself, hm?"

The sky-child grumbled as the cold fingers of the demon touched his cheek. "Never!" he growled.

"Too bad…" The demon lord pulled back his hand and scratched Link's cheek. The sky-child screamed in pain. Blood dripped on his tunic. He turned around to punch Ghirahim in the face, but he was already gone.

"Come back, you coward!" Link yelled. But there was no sign of the demon.

"Link!" Zelda walked towards him and grabbed his arms. "What's wrong with you? Who are you talking to?"

Link didn't answer, he didn't want to make Zelda even more scared.

"What's that?" Zelda touched the just-inflicted wound. "When did that happen? It's still bleeding…"

But before he had a chance to reply, Zelda screamed when she felt someone tugging at her arm. "Let go of me!" she cried, trying to escape the iron grip of the demon lord, but it was no use.

He dragged her towards the smaller door at the side of the temple. But there was one thing Ghirahim had totally forgotten about : Impa. She ran towards him and tripped him up. He fell to the floor and lost his grip on Zelda. She jumped up and fled to the far other side of the temple.

"Run, Zelda, run!" Impa yelled. Zelda pulled open the front doors and left as fast as she could.

Ghirahim started to get up again, but Link grinded his foot into his stomach and he fell flat on his back again. Link pressed his foot on Ghirahim's chest. "This is the fourth time I win," he said smiling, "the fourth time you lose! Even without any weapons I can still beat you, Ghirahim. You're nothing! Why do you keep trying to defeat me? I don't understand."

"Because…" Ghirahim hissed, "Let me get up and I'll explain."

Link had never seen him like this before, he looked truly desperate. Link pulled his foot away and Ghirahim stood up. He coughed and a bit of blood dripped down at the corner of his mouth.

"Well?" Link said.

"I have to," Ghirahim replied.

"But why do you do it for him if you know you won't succeed?"

"He's my master! Has Fi ever objected to do as you told her? I don't think so! And by the way, you're wrong if you think I won't succeed!" Ghirahim grinned and he grabbed the sky-child by his throat. With his other hand he snapped his fingers and let one sword appear.

"And you stay there!" he pointed the sword at Impa. She recoiled in fear.

"You humiliated me one time too many… As a punishment, you'll be my prisoner until that spirit maiden of yours turns up. And let me tell you this one thing : once you are my prisoner, you'll wish you'd never been born!" After the demon lord had spoken these words, he snapped his fingers and both he and the sky-child disappeared…

The two reappeared in a dark room that was illuminated by two torches. Ghirahim dragged Link along to a red-coloured door and opened it.

They entered a large room. The walls were painted dark-yellow with patterns of diamonds and there was a table in the middle of the room. A red bokoblin was cleaning the table.

"Bokob" Ghirahim said. The bokoblin turned around and made a quick bow. "Meet your new helper." Ghirahim pushed Link forward. "Teach him the tricks of the trade and make sure he does everything exactly as you tell him to do. I want to have an obedient servant when I return."

Ghirahim walked to one of the three doors that led out of this room. Before he opened the door, he turned back to Link and the bokoblin, "One more important thing, Bokob, don't hesitate to visit the torture chamber if necessary." He said, smiling at Link, "And Link, remember, this is only a warm-up. You're only doing this because my palace is in need of some cleaning. And let me warn you, you'd better enjoy this, since the other things you'll be doing will be much more unpleasant!" He started laughing and left.

Link sighed in relief that the demon lord had finally left him alone. One bokoblin shouldn't be too much to deal with. He had already defeated hundreds of them in the past.

Bokob placed a bucket on the table in front of Link and handed him a rag. Link started cleaning the table.

"Already done table," the bokoblin muttered, "Follow." He walked to the one door that hadn't been opened yet. Link followed him, trying to act as obedient as possible.

"Master Ghirahim wrong," the bokoblin said as they left the room, "You not seem hard to listen to me."

"Master Ghirahim is stupid," Link mumbled.

"What you say?" Bokob asked.

"Nothing…"

Ghirahim really was stupid, to leave him alone with one bokoblin that couldn't even speak proper English. Did he want him to escape? Was it a trap? Or was this bokoblin only acting to be stupid? Anyway, trying to run away wouldn't hurt.

He followed the bokoblin through some sort of hallway. When the red creature just stopped to open another door, Link raised the bucket and threw it on the back of his head.

Bokob shrieked and fell to the ground, losing a great amount of blood. Link waited a few moments to make sure he was dead and then started running. He ran further through the hallway until he had to turn left or right.

He turned left, but then saw two blue bokoblins were coming his way. Quickly, he turned back and took the right turn. The bokoblins set off in pursuit. They weren't very fast, but as they came closer, one of them called for help by blowing a horn.

More doors flew open and more bokoblins filled the hallway. It was then that Link realized this had been the wrong thing to do. Not only did the number of bokoblins grow, but the end of the hallway was coming closer as well.

Link stopped running and looked around, searching desperately for a way out. But soon he was surrounded by a horde of bokoblins and there was no way left to escape.

Two of them came forward and grabbed Link's arms. He struggled and tried to get free, but it was no use. More bokoblins started tugging at him and they dragged him into a room. It was a dark room and there was a nasty smell.

The bokoblins threw him into something wet and sticky, it felt like mud and smelled awful. One by one, they left. Some kicked him or threw a bit of this filthy substance on his head, but Link had to admit this wasn't as bad as he had expected. He had thought of some more serious punishment for killing a bokoblin.

Slowly, he climbed back to his feet and wiped off the worst of the stuff. He walked to the exit of the room. The door was left open and as it got lighter, Link could see what kind of thing he had been lying in. It looked like the leftovers of food mixed with some sort of liquid.

He looked at himself in disgust as he continued to walk to the open door. He peeked round the corner to make sure there weren't any bokoblins guarding. The hallway was completely empty. They must have returned to the rooms they came from, even the two blue ones that were guarding this area before, were now gone.

Now that the coast was clear, Link entered the corridor and started walking back to the room he had come from. Once he got out of this place, he could search a river to wash himself and then he could return to the Faron woods, to find Zelda and run away with her. They would go to a place that no evil could reach, a place that Ghirahim would never find. Carried away by thoughts, he didn't notice a door behind him being opened.

"Where do you think you're going?"

Link turned around to see where the speaker was, but the hallway was still empty. He thought he had imagined it, because of his fear to run into Ghirahim. But when he turned back around, he saw he didn't imagine anything at all.

Right in front of him stood none other than Ghirahim. "Well, well, trying to sneak away?"

Link didn't dare to answer.

"I told you to clean the palace!" Ghirahim shouted, "Not to make it worse! Look what you've done!" He pointed at the way Link had gone, now clearly visible as it was marked with brown footprints.

"But the bokoblins…" Link tried to explain.

"Oh yes, let's blame the bokoblins!"

"But they –"

"I can't blame them. They only did what they considered to be the best thing to do to punish the murderer of one of them, though they know very well what the real punishment is for murder. I suppose they wanted you to have a double punishment."

"A double punishment?! What are you going to do?!"

"Oh, you'll see. Come on, follow me."

"What are you going to do with me?"

"I said : follow me!"

Reluctantly, Link followed the demon lord. "Where are we going?" he asked.

"The torture chamber."

"What? Are you serious? Haven't I been punished enough yet?"

"No."

"But why like this? Do you like that or what?"

"I have to do something to keep control of my underlings. If I didn't introduce this punishment, they wouldn't stop murdering one another. And yes, I have to admit that I like that."

"You are insane!"

"Am I?"

"And I am not one of your underlings!"

"Sure you are. Or… perhaps you're right. You're not one of my underlings, you're my prisoner. And that means even the bokoblins have the right to kill you, unless I forbid them to. So I think you'd better do as I say, as your life depends on me. If you don't, I can send some bokoblins after you. And wouldn't that be a humiliating death for the 'hero of the skies', being killed by some simple bokoblins?"

"You wouldn't do that, you first want to torture me!"

"That's true."

Link sighed.

"And walk a bit faster," Ghirahim grumbled, "We first have to visit the bathroom. I don't want you to make a mess of my torture chamber."

"Of course.."

They continued to walk through a lot of hallways until they arrived at a red door marked with a sign that said : 'No entry'. Ghirahim took a key and unlocked the door.

"What is this room?" Link asked suspiciously.

"It's my room."

"Your room? And… what do we have to do in your room?"

Ghirahim sighed, "You have to take a bath. Well, the bathroom is this way."

"But why does it have to be your bathroom?"

"Because there isn't any other! You should be happy that you're allowed to use it! Now shut up and follow me!" He opened the door. "And, take your boots off before you enter."

Link took off his boots and followed the demon lord inside. It was a dark room and he could barely see where he was going.

"Stay close, but don't touch me," Ghirahim said.

"How can I stay close if I don't know where you are?"

"You aren't used to anything, are you?"

"But why is it so dark anyway?"

"Because I like the darkness."

"Then why are all the other rooms lighted?"

"Remember that I told you to shut up?"

Ghirahim snapped his fingers and two torches were illuminated at once. "Because I don't want you to run into my stuff." He muttered.

"Thank you", Link said.

Ghirahim opened a door at the side of the room and motioned Link to go inside. "Take a bath. And do it quickly, please."

The sky-child entered the room and shut the door behind him. He was glad to be alone for a moment, but he knew it wouldn't last long. Once he had taken this bath, he would be tortured. What a nice prospect!

He undressed and stepped in the bath. When he was only lying in it for a minute, Ghirahim called for him.

"Hey sky-child! Are you done?"

"No!"

"Hurry up then!"

"I just got in! Be patient!"

He heard a sigh at the other side of the door. Quickly he started washing himself. He didn't want Ghirahim to enter before he was done.

A few minutes later he climbed out of the bath. But there was one big problem: his clothes. They were still dirty. If he would put them on again, the bath wouldn't have mattered. He sighed and walked to the door. "Ghirahim?" he asked cautiously.

"What is it? You don't have to ask me for permission to leave the bathroom."

"It's uhm … about my clothes. What do I have to do with them?"

"Put them on. Unless you want me to see you naked."

"But they're still dirty."

"Then take a towel and wrap it around you, is that so difficult to think of? I thought you were smarter than a bokoblin, but maybe I shall have to change my mind."

Link grumbled as he did as Ghirahim instructed. Then he left the bathroom.

Ghirahim was lying on his bed. "Finally", he sighed. "Now go get that bottle over there and give it to me."

Link walked to the cupboard Ghirahim had indicated and picked up the bottle. "What is this?" he asked.

"My drink. What else would it be?"

"I know that, but what kind of drink is it? I'd say it's heart potion, but it's a lot darker."

"It's blood."

"Do you really drink … this?" Link asked in disgust.

"Of course I drink that! Now give it to me, I'm thirsty"

"Bloodthirsty you mean."

Ghirahim sighed. "Yes, I love blood. Any problem with that?"

"Yes. I don't want you to torture me."

"Ha! You're afraid there will be too much blood, aren't you? Set your mind at ease, there's no need to be scared. I know how to do that, you won't die."

"I know that you won't let me die. You prefer to hurt me until I beg you to kill me!"

"You seem to know me quite well, sky-child, but it won't be that bad, not yet. However, I have more than enough reasons to make it as painful as possible. But I'll spare you this one time, because I'm not particularly in the mood to do heavy torture. Can you give me that bottle now, please?"

"Of course, Ghirahim. Thank you for being willing to spare me."

"Don't thank me, or I'll have to change my mind."

"Well, actually, Ghirahim, you're not that bad, you know."

"Oh, is that what you think? Do I have to show you how bad I can be then?"

"No", Link smiled, "It's just…" He walked closer to the bed until he stood right beside the demon lord. "It's just that…"

Ghirahim stared at the sky-child, following every move he made. Apart from that he didn't do anything. He didn't know what to say. What if the sky-child actually liked him? He blinked to get rid of that thought. Link seemed to stand even closer now.

"Ghirahim…" he whispered, and took a deep breath, "I hate you!" he screamed while he slashed with the bottle at Ghirahim's head.

The demon lord was too late to cover his face and got hit just above his left eye. He screamed in pain and clutched his forehead. Blood flowed down his face, both his own and the blood that came from the bottle.

Link turned around and ran out of the room as fast as he could. He had to find a way out of this place, right now at this very moment. He didn't want to know what Ghirahim was going to do with him if he couldn't escape in time.

Hallways passed while he ran as though his life depended on it. And then, very unexpectedly, all his wishes seemed to come true when he noticed a window at the far end of this hallway. Link spurted these last hundred meters to the exit.

Freedom was just within reach when a net was thrown over his head. It fell around his entire body and made it difficult for the sky-child to move.

Two green bokoblins came walking towards him. One of them carried a rope and bound it around Link's arms. Link desperately tried to break free, but it was all wasted effort. One of the bokoblins left while the other pushed Link to the wall.

A bit later, the one who had left returned, holding a machete. Link tried once more to escape, but it still didn't work. The bokoblin raised the machete and hit Link on his head with the flat side. The sky-child immediately passed out.


	3. Chapter 3

In the meantime, Zelda was running in the darkness of night searching for a place to hide. She didn't know whether Ghirahim was coming after her or Link had been able to stop him, maybe even kill him. She hoped for the last option, but it was most unlikely, knowing he had no weapons to fight with.

It was hard to find a good hiding place. Every place seemed too easy to notice. The main problem was that Ghirahim knew his terrain all too well, way better than she knew it. She hadn't explored the whole Faron Woods yet and if the demon lord would send his troops to look for her, she didn't stand a chance to escape.

Was it better to leave the Faron Woods? Maybe return to Skyloft? No, that was the worst she could do. It was too logical that she would go to Skyloft if she didn't stay in the Faron Woods. And it would also endanger her friends there.

No, she had to do something completely different, something no one would expect her to do. She had to seek out the danger. She had to do something she never would have done, she had to go and look for Ghirahim.

The closer she would be to his place, the safer she would be. No one would expect her to be close to him.

But first she had to return to the Sealed Temple, to ask Link to help her. It was best if she'd first spend the night here somewhere, to make sure Ghirahim wouldn't be in the temple when she arrived.

She looked around and saw an opening between two rocks, the perfect hiding place for now. She remembered Link showing this place to her.

Still a bit unsure she entered the dark grotto. She walked deeper inside until she reached the end. It wasn't a large grotto, but at night is was nearly visible. And the next morning, she would be gone again, which made this one of the best hiding places. Zelda sat down and closed her eyes. Soon afterwards she fell asleep.

... ... ...

When Link woke up, he felt his arms were still tied together. With some difficulty he got up and opened his eyes, but it was all black. He looked around, but couldn't spot any lights in this area.

"Is anybody here?" he asked, trembling with fear. In the distance he heard the noises of bokoblins.

"Bokoblins, can you tell me where I am?" he asked. The only answer was the rattling of chains.

"Is your master here?" Link tried again.

"Your fault!" the bokoblin screamed, "It all your fault!"

Link didn't know what to answer.

"Master furious! Kill my friend, torture me! Never see master like that! It all your fault! You not fall asleep, my friend still alive and I not have pain!"

"But you made me 'fall asleep'! If you hadn't hit me with that machete, I wouldn't have fallen unconscious!" Link shouted, "And I am not the one who killed your friend and tortured you! Blame your master!"

"Master not like that!"

"You're too loyal! All bokoblins are! Your master only uses you as his toys to do the dirty work and whenever he feels like killing one of you, he just does it for no reason!"

At that moment, the door was opened and a loud bang followed when it was shut.

"Master!" the bokoblin said, "Human talk bad of you!"

"Shut up…" Ghirahim growled.

"But he say it your fault!"

"And I said you had to shut up!"

Link could hear a different tone in Ghirahim's voice, something … terrifying. Then he heard a sword being drawn, he heard Ghirahim stabbing and the bokoblin screaming.

Link wished he could shut his ears somehow. He could literally hear the bokoblin choking in his own blood.

"Now it's your turn", Ghirahim said while he pulled the sword out of the bokoblin's dead body and turned to Link. The sky-child tried to stand and run away.

"Oh, no no no, you won't get away! Not this time!" Ghirahim quickened his pace.

Link's stomach turned when the demon lord had almost reached him. He clenched his teeth and tried to imagine something good would happen. However, that was far from possible.

Ghirahim grabbed him by his hair and hauled him to his feet. Then he untied the blindfold that covered Link's eyes. Link opened his eyes and looked right into those of Ghirahim. He could feel the hate burning in the demon's eyes.

"Don't hurt me", Link whispered.

"No? You can't stop me this time. You've hurt me too much. Too much. And you're going to pay for that!"

Link closed his eyes.

"Look at me," Ghirahim growled. "Look at me!" He gave Link a good shaking.

"No." Link responded firmly, eyes still closed.

Ghirahim pushed him away and turned around. Link stumbled and fell flat on his back. He stared up at the ceiling. The original colour must have been a light shade of grey, but now there were several red spots, probably bloodstains, knowing Ghirahim. Maybe this was the torture chamber he had been talking about?

He sat up and looked around. The walls were even more discoloured, and so was the floor, that was plain red.

"Don't you ever clean this place?" he asked, though he knew what the answer would be, he even knew why.

Ghirahim turned his head to Link. He was holding something, but the sky-child couldn't quite see what it was. "Get up and come over here," the demon lord said.

Link rose and did as he was told. Ghirahim's first angry look turned into a smile,

"Good. Now look around and admire the place that will be burnt in your memory."

Link cautiously looked around. The first time, he only noticed the change of colours on the walls, but now he saw pairs of chains were bound to two of the four walls, the left and the right. The dead bokoblin was still chained to the wall. Link quickly looked away.

Strangely enough, there was no door leading out of this room. It was completely empty, except for one cupboard Ghirahim was looking at.

"What is this place?" Link asked.

"Hmm… which one would I choose…" Ghirahim mumbled, ignoring Link's question.

Link hesitated for a moment. Was this a chance to attack? Ghirahim didn't seem very watchful, but that could also be a trick, just like the last time, when he left him with that bokoblin.

"You just left me with that bokoblin, because you knew I would kill it, and then you had a reason to torture me!" he exclaimed.

"I don't need a reason to torture you," Ghirahim replied calmly. "Tell me Link, head or tail?"

"What?"

"Head or tail, just pick one."

"None!"

"None? You want them both then? That's alright by me, but I think you'll regret that."

"No, that's not what I meant! I wanted to say … head."

"Head? Alright…" Ghirahim took something out of the cupboard and then closed it. He turned to Link and showed him a whip. "Isn't she beautiful? The end reminds me of a snake head. These two pins are the teeth, do you see? It's one of my favourite whips. You've chosen quite well."

"Have I?" Link asked unsure.

"Of course. I'd say tail is better to start with, because it's not as painful as this one, but it won't make any difference in the long run."

"So you're going to whip me…"

"What would I do with a whip if it wasn't to whip you? Of course I'm going to whip you. That's your punishment. Punishment for murder once was death, back in the time of my master, but I had to change it. Too many bokoblins died and they weren't afraid to be punished. My master did it too quickly , it didn't even hurt. I prefer it the long way. Long and excruciating torment, that's the way I like it."

"Mhm" Link nodded as if he completely understood, but he didn't understand it at all. How could you like hurting people? He would never understand Ghirahim's way of thinking.

"We've talked enough for now, time for some action. Turn around." Ghirahim said.

Link pretended he didn't hear it. "I imagined your torture room to be much bigger, and much more complex," he said.

"It is. This is just one department of the torture chamber. You'll see when we're done here. Now turn around." Link didn't react.

"Turn around", Ghirahim repeated, more irritated this time. Link stared at the demon lord as if he was speaking Chinese.

"Turn around or you'll get the whip in your face!" Ghirahim's words echoed through the room. Link slowly turned around.

One second later, he screamed in pain when the first whiplash hit his back.

"That's for beating me the first time in the Skyview Temple!" Ghirahim shouted while he slashed with the whip once more, "And this is for helping the spirit maiden escape at the Gate of Time!"

Another whiplash followed.

"For defeating my golden machine in the Ancient Cistern!"

Link tried not to scream as the whip once more ripped open the skin of his back.

"For beating me again in the Fire Sanctuary!"

The sky-child staggered as he tried to keep his balance.

Ghirahim laughed, "And how do you like it now, hmm?!"

Link fell to his knees, "Stop it!"

"I'm not even halfway yet! It's your own fault, you shouldn't have done all of this!"

Link tried to stand, but another slash of the whip made him fall again.

"For arriving too quick and interrupting my ritual!" Ghirahim continued, "For beating me a third time!"

Then he paused for a moment. Link waited for another whiplash to follow, but it didn't come. He looked behind him and saw Ghirahim was walking away.

"What…" he panted out, "are you doing?"

The demon lord didn't respond. He opened the cupboard and took another whip out. "Triple teeth," he said, "Worse than snake head."

"Worse?" Link asked in disbelief.

"This isn't even my worst whip. You should try the devil's horns. That's the real thing!" Ghirahim smiled.

Link tried to stand, he didn't want to look weak, especially not towards the demon lord. "Show me… what you're worth then.." he brought out with difficulty. The pain started overpowering him again, but he kept standing.

A smirk appeared on Ghirahim's face, "You're weak sky-child! Don't try to hide it, I can see it!"

Link turned his head to Ghirahim, "I am.. Not weak!" he shouted.

Ghirahim laughed, "You can barely keep standing! I doubt you'll still think so after one more whiplash!"

"This is… unfair!" Link gasped, "I … want to fight!"

"Fight? You? In this condition? Don't make me laugh!"

"You're afraid… aren't you? You don't… want to fight, because… you always lost the swordfight!"

Ghirahim grumbled and snapped his fingers. Two swords appeared. The threw one to Link, "Catch!"

Link didn't catch the sword and it clashed to the floor. "I want my … Master Sword …" he said, "I won't fight … with this."

"Then you don't fight!" Ghirahim said while he approached the sky-child, "I don't care whether you try to defend of not. I will fight anyway!"

Link grabbed the sword and aimed it at his enemy. The demon lord gave a slight tap with his sword against Link's. Link got out of balance.

Ghirahim sighed, "Weak, sky-child, weak." Link growled and gave a hard slash with the sword, but his attack was blocked. He slashed again, and again, and he kept slashing like a madman until he had driven the demon lord against the wall. Then he quickly stabbed.

Ghirahim tried to block the attack, but he could only avert the sword and he got hit in his side. He grumbled and jabbed at Link with his sword.

The sky-child had to recoil to dodge the attack and he almost lost his balance in the process. Ghirahim gave another slash and cut Link in his left arm. Link fell and dropped his sword. The demon lord sat down on his stomach and pressed the sword under his chin.

"You've lost, sky-child! You're worthless!" he smirked.

"Get off me!" Link tried to retrieve his sword, but it was out of reach.

Ghirahim started to make a cut in his chin. "Don't …" Link whispered and he turned his head to the side, but that only made it worse.

Ghirahim giggled, "You're caught like a rat in a trap, sky-child. How does it feel now, hmm?"

Link bit on the bullet. He hadn't lost yet, oh no! He felt his fingertips now touched the hilt of his sword. He tried to grab it. Ghirahim didn't seem to watch his actions, he was only staring hypnotized at the scar he was making in his face.

The pain grew stronger, especially in his back. Ghirahim's weight was just too much for his open wounds. But he had to endure this pain, for Zelda. The longer he kept the sword spirit occupied, the more time Zelda had to escape.

His sword was now within reach. The sky-child grabbed it and raised his arm. But apparently Ghirahim wasn't as hypnotized as he seemed, he grabbed Link's arm and pressed it to the floor again.

"You never give up, do you?" he sighed.

"Not as long as you're still alive!" Link growled.

These words angered the demon lord and he stabbed Link in the upper arm. Link screamed and lost grip on his sword. Ghirahim took the sword out his hand and pointed both the swords at the sky-child's eyes.

He slowly let the swords slide down his face, leaving two parallel scars beneath Link's eyes. Tears filled those eyes. Ghirahim smirked, "Sweet revenge I say! For killing my master!"


	4. Chapter 4

**I'm so sorry for the late update! **

...

The sunlight shone through the crack in the wall and woke Zelda. She got up and left the grotto.

The forest looked exactly the same as before their enemy had returned. She looked around more carefully but couldn't spot any monsters, so she set off to the Sealed Temple. There wasn't anything different in the woods, but Zelda didn't feel relaxed. She felt like she could be attacked at any time.

Some time later she arrived at the Sealed Temple. She hesitated to open the doors.

"Impa? Link?" she asked cautiously.

"Zelda?" Impa responded, "Come in my dear, quickly."

Zelda opened the heavy doors and entered the temple. Impa was sitting at the far end of the temple, where she usually sat.

Zelda slowly walked towards her, "Where is Link?" she asked.

"Come closer, my dear," Impa didn't sound as if she was about to tell her something good.

"What happened, Impa? Where is Link? Ghirahim didn't … kill him, did he?"

"No, he didn't. Or at least, he didn't do it here. I don't know what he did to him after he left."

"He left, with Link?"

"Yes, he took Link as his prisoner so you would go there to look for Link."

"Where did he go?"

"Probably to the place where he lives, but we don't know where that is."

"We have to find it."

"What, Zelda? Are you mad?! That's exactly what he wants!"

"I know that, but I was already planning to go and look for him before I knew he had taken Link away. He doesn't have to see us, we just have to wait there until he'll let Link go, and then we'll see what we'll do to kill him. And we are much safer close to him, they won't expect us to be there, they'll think I've run away as far as possible. But we're smarter than that, aren't we?"

"Still, Zelda, it's not a good idea. He can ask Fi to tell him where you are. She can sense your aura and lead him to you. And then he'll find you fast."

"Fi won't betray me!"

"And what if he threatens her? He can kill her if he wants to, Fi is not someone to fight."

"She can still hide in the Master Sword or ask Link to help her. Please, Impa, come with me. I don't want to go there on my own. And you can still defend me when there's no other way out. You've saved me so many times before! You will do it again when I'm in danger!"

"When I saved you, I wasn't … old, like I am now. All I can do now is stand between you and him and wait until he throws me aside. I can't do more to protect you than giving you a few more seconds headstart to run away."

"But you've saved me like this too! When you tripped him up, you saved me then! Please, Impa! You can't change my mind, I will go. And I want you to come with me!"

Impa sighed, "You don't leave me much choice, do you? If you think this is the best thing to do, I will come with you. I can't let you go on your own. The goddess has indicated me to protect you, and so I will, wherever you go, Zelda."

"Thank you, Impa!"

"But remember that by doing this, you don't only endanger your own life, but also mine and maybe Link's as well. And indirectly everyone's, if you fail."

"But we won't fail! We're going to save everyone's life. Nobody will be killed! Except Ghirahim, but no one cares about his life anyway. We're going to make the whole world very happy!"

"I hope you're right …"

Zelda ran to the side door, "Come on, Impa! Are you coming or what?"

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Impa followed Zelda to the door and together they left.

...

About an hour later, Ghirahim climbed off the sky-child. Link felt like dying. He couldn't remember ever feeling so much pain.

"Get up!" he heard from afar, as if someone was talking to him when he was still half asleep. He tried to move, but he couldn't.

Ghirahim sighed and lightly kicked him in the side, but the sky-child didn't react. The demon lord bent forward and touched Link's cheek. "Hey sky-child!"

Link only moaned a bit in response.

Ghirahim sighed, "I've been a bit too hard, haven't I?"

He grabbed Link's arm and tried to pull him upwards. "Come on, sky-child, get up. We need to humph, get out of here."

"Zelda …" Link mumbled.

"No, I'm not Zelda!" Ghirahim yanked at his arm. "Get up! I can still call the bokoblins to take you away if you don't listen to me! And they will hurt you again and again. You have to pass the torture chamber, remember?"

Much to his surprise, Link seemed to understand and he tried to stand. Ghirahim helped him get up and supported him on their way out. When they reached the wall across the cupboard, the Sword Spirit snapped his fingers and laid his hand on the wall. It lit up and a part, the shape of a door, vanished.

They left the 'whip room' and entered the torture chamber. Link tried to get away from Ghirahim.

"Don't worry," the demon lord tightened his grip, "I won't hurt you. Not now. I don't want to kill you. I can see that you're almost … that I've hurt you too much. I won't say I'm sorry, but I should've known when to stop. You aren't used to this kind of thing … But it was your own fault anyway. You made me angry. I've never felt so angry before …"

Link fell to his knees. Ghirahim didn't see it coming and dropped him. He quickly knelt down in front of the sky-child and grabbed his arms, "Hey! Are you alright?" he asked.

Link tried to say something, but there came no sound from his mouth.

"Are you tired?" Ghirahim asked. "Do you want to take a rest on the rack perhaps?"

Link tried to back away.

"Sst, it's alright. I was just joking," Ghirahim whispered. "You can trust me. I'm not someone who easily breaks his word. Ask my master."

He stared at the floor. His master. This room… Memories from the past returned. He started breathing loudly.

Link wanted to ask what was wrong, but he still hadn't enough strength to talk. He felt dizzy again and the pain grew stronger. He hated Ghirahim. So very much. Even towards Groose, who had been bullying him all the time when he was little, he had never left like this. He hoped Ghirahim would get a heart attack or some other kind of thing that would kill him. Clearly, something was going wrong.

The demon lord now started trembling as well. Link wanted to punch him in the face now he got the chance, but his body didn't listen to him and all he could do was lightly touch Ghirahim's nose. Ghirahim's eyes flew open and he looked terrified.

"Oh… it's you…" he said, sounding relieved. He quickly looked around, "He… isn't here?"

Link stared at him in wonderment. He wanted to ask who he was talking about, but he was still too weak.

Ghirahim raised, "We need to get out of here, quickly. I can't stand this place anymore." He grabbed Link and picked him up.

Link sighed. He didn't want Ghirahim to carry him and he knew Ghirahim didn't want it either, but the demon really had to get out of here, that was obvious.

Link closed his eyes and let his head rest on Ghirahim's shoulder. This was a lot better than walking anyway, even though it was his worst enemy. For once he didn't want to worry about it, he just wanted to rest.

"Aren't you supposed to hate me?" Ghirahim asked, surprised at the sight of the sky-child doing such a thing. But he didn't answer.

The demon lord sighed. "Well… we don't have to be enemies all the time, you know… We can postpone the fight until I've brought you to your prison. You can use this rest to recover. And in the prison you won't be able to rest as relaxed as here, in my arms." Ghirahim smiled. "You don't have to be afraid … if you can hear me. But you might better sleep already."

They continued to walk for a long time. Link slowly opened his eyes and stared up at the demon lord. Why couldn't he be like this all the time …

...

About five days later, Zelda and Impa had finally arrived at the palace of their enemy.

"Is all of this Ghirahim's property? I've never seen a building this big. I thought the statue at the isle of the goddess was enormous, but this …" Zelda said.

"It must be Demise's palace," Impa replied.

"But look at those gardens!" Zelda exclaimed. "They're so beautiful! Are you sure it's theirs? I would never expect it to belong to someone evil."

"The gardens might not look like that, but look at the building itself. It radiates darkness."

"I hope Link is alright in there … Do you think Ghirahim would kill him?"

"I think that's possible, but not just yet. He wanted to use Link as bait to get you there. You wouldn't go there if Link was dead. But once he knows you're here, he has no reason to keep him alive. So Zelda, it's very important you don't show your face. We have to wait until Link can escape."

"And what if he can't escape?"

"You have to believe in him. How many times has he beaten Ghirahim in the past?"

"Uhm… a lot… but… I have a bad feeling about this. I don't know why, but I don't believe he'll make it through this time."

"Ignore your premonitions, Zelda. All we have to do is wait."

"You're right, Impa. Never give up hope, he always said that to me when I was scared it would all go wrong."

"I'm sure he would have said that to you now as well if he got the chance."

"We just have to wait here. There's plenty of food, so we won't get hungry. He wouldn't poison his own garden, would he?"

"Probably not. But I wouldn't eat any plants from the garden, just in case we're wrong."

"Come to think of it, isn't it possible that he was the one to poison the lake and the great tree? Who else would've done it? It can't be coincidence that it happened right at the moment when he returned."

"Possibly," Impa sighed and sat down on the grass, "I'm tired of walking for so long. My old bones aren't used to it anymore."

Zelda sat down beside her protector. "Move a bit to this side," she said, "then we're both out of sight of the palace. Just to be sure that we're safe."

Impa moved up to the place Zelda had indicated. "I'm going to take a nap if that's alright with you. Then I will be on the watch this night. And you can take over tomorrow morning."

"That's alright."

Impa laid down on the grass and soon fell asleep while Zelda looked out for the danger that might come to them.

...

Five days had passed when Link woke up and felt like his body had almost recovered from the torture.

He sat up and looked around. On the floor was a platter with a bread and a bottle filled with a red drink. Next to it, he saw a pair of white feet, Ghirahim's feet.

"Just how long have you been standing here?!" he exclaimed in surprise.

"Not that long. Just a few minutes. I already started to think you wouldn't wake up anymore. You've been sleeping for five days now."

"Leave me alone!"

"You are clearly yourself again. Look, I've been so nice to bring some food and a drink for you. You can use it after sleeping for so long. It isn't normal how long you've slept…"

"I needed that sleep to recover from what you did to me! That wasn't normal either! Now leave me alone!"

"As you wish. But I won't be here till tomorrow morning. So if you need me, you'll have to wait."

"I don't need you! Unless it were to open this prison and let me go! Apart from that, I don't need you! Under no circumstances!"

"Hmm …" Ghirahim said doubtfully, "I thought you might have wanted to beg me for a different drink, but if you don't, I'll just go."

Link grabbed the bottle, "What is this?!" he asked suspiciously."

"What do you think it is?" Ghirahim said smiling.

"Eww!" Link screamed in disgust, "If you expect me to drink blood, you can forget about it! I'd rather die!"

He threw the bottle at Ghirahim, but the Sword Spirit caught it. "Don't you dare try to hit me again with a bottle! It's this or nothing! Up to you to decide whether to drink it or not!" He put it down with a crash.

"You'll have to give me something else!" Link said. "You don't want me to die, and I will die if I don't drink anything!"

"Your death means nothing to me!" Ghirahim said, spitting out every word. He snapped his fingers and disappeared.

Link stared at the bottle. He had to get out of here, and quickly, before he was in need of a drink. He had to find a way out of this bloody palace!

He arose and looked around. A typical prison, it was. The cold stone walls and iron bars blocking the exit. Nothing more. Link walked to the exit and grabbed the iron bars. As far as he could see, there was no one around. One lone torch spread its light in the dark passage. It was deadly silent. Link sighed and laid his head against the bars.

Suddenly the silence was broken when a door was opened. Link lifted his head. He heard footsteps coming his way and got an idea. He picked the bottle from the ground and opened it. Then he lay down on the floor and poured the blood on his clothes, trying to look dead.

While the footsteps came nearer, Link wondered when he'd got his clothes back. The last time he remembered wearing them was before he took a bath. He had left them there because they were still dirty. Had Ghirahim brought them back and… had he dressed him up? Who knows what had happened while he was unconscious!

He heard the footsteps suddenly stop, followed by a minute of silence. The sky-child didn't dare to open his eyes, he knew that whoever had come this way was now looking at him. The rattling of keys echoed through the empty corridor. But the creaking of the opening door was even worse. Link held his breath as the unknown person neared.

"Prisoner?" the voice of a bokoblin asked.

A bokoblin, it was just a bokoblin!

He opened his eyes, jumped up and slashed with the bottle at the bokoblin. The poor creature didn't realize what was happening and got hit at his temple. It fell and Link continued to slash it, until it was dead. He dropped the bottle next to the dead body and walked out of the prison.

At the far end, on the right hand side, was another torch burning. Its light showed the way to a door. Link ran towards the door. He passed a lot of other prisons, but none of them seemed to be occupied, or at least not with someone alive. In one of the cells he spotted a skeleton and in another the dead body of a bokoblin, but nothing that was still alive.

He had reached the door and opened it. The bright light blinded his eyes. He had to wait a few seconds for his eyes to get used to the light before he could continue on his way out.

The hallway he had entered was completely empty and there were no doors at the side unlike in all the other hallways. Link walked to the end, now at least he wouldn't be attacked from the back. The corridor turned into stairs. He kept following this path.

At the end of the stairs was a door. Carefully, the sky-child opened the door. It lead him into a large room, full of bokoblins. Link hesitated for a moment. He could return to the prisons, but wasn't sure there was another way out, or he could cross this room, but it was crowded with bokoblins and he couldn't even see the end of the room.

He was standing a bit too long in the doorway, and thus a bokoblin spotted him. He quickly turned around and ran away. The bokoblins that were closer to the door had noticed his presence as well and they set off in pursuit.

Link sprinted down the stairs and hurried through the corridor. He grabbed the handle of the door, pulled it open and quickly shut it behind him. The cry of a bokoblin that ran into the door and the grumbling of the others that couldn't enter because the one fell and now blocked their path gave Link a little hope.

He had passed about ten prisons when the door was opened and the bokoblins one by one filled the passage. He continued to run. And he was lucky, at the end he saw another door, becoming bigger as he neared.

A few moments later, he arrived at the door. As he opened it, he looked one more time behind him and saw some of the bokoblins were already terrifyingly close. He didn't have time to close it, so he left it open. It might be an advantage for the bokoblins, but Link didn't have time to think.

At this side the door directly led to stairs, instead of first to a hallway and then stairs. Hopefully there wasn't a room filled with bokoblins at the end of these stairs too. Link started climbing the stairs and soon afterwards, the bokoblins followed.

Just one or two steps before the end of this long staircase, the sky-child felt an arrow piercing through his left leg. He screamed and fell to his knees. The red enemies quickly came closer.

Link climbed on his feet again and limped further. He arrived at the end of the staircase, but there was no door to shut and hold the bokoblins away, there was only another corridor. Somehow it looked familiar to Link, but there were so many of them and they all looked the same.

He didn't stand a chance of escape at this point, so he had to do something else. He grabbed the arrow in his leg and pulled it out. It hurt damn much, but now at least he had a weapon to fight with. He turned around and stabbed with it at the earliest possible bokoblin. It didn't expect this to happen and got badly hit in its face. Link kept stabbing at others too, but there were just too many of them. They surrounded him and started attacking.

...

Ghirahim sat on his bed, staring at a painting of his master that hung at the wall. What was taking the Spirit Maiden so long? Didn't she care about the sky-child then?

He sighed and took another sip of his glass, filled with blood. He didn't want to go looking for the Spirit Maiden himself, but if she wouldn't turn up soon, she didn't leave him much of a choice. He couldn't let his master wait much longer.

"I'm sorry, master, it's taking me so long," he said to the Master Sword.

Ghirahim had laid it next to him on the bed. He didn't want his master to be cold or lay on some unworthy place. He wondered what it would be like for his master to live inside a sword.

Ghirahim knew what it felt like, but he was a Sword Spirit, and his master wasn't. The Demon King wouldn't like it, especially not the fact that his servant had treated him like a Sword Spirit.

The demon lord sighed. He knew he would have to pay for that, with some very excruciating torture. His master might have not liked to punish the bokoblins with torture every time they did something wrong (because if he had to punish them all, he wouldn't have much time left to do other things), but when it was Ghirahim himself who had done something wrong...

The Sword Spirit's thoughts got interrupted by a faint cry. At first he wasn't sure whether it was real or he had imagined it, but when a second cry followed, he was sure it was real. It didn't sound bokoblinish though, it sounded human. And there was only one human here in the palace: Link.

Ghirahim jumped out of his bed and hastily left his room. A third scream came to his way, and this one wasn't just an ordinary scream, it was a scream for help, coming from the left side. He turned left and ran towards the sound.

As he came closer, he heard some more screams, and the sounds of attacking bokoblins. He started running faster. At first he turned left, then right, he almost knocked over a passing bokoblin, and then, at the far end of this hallway, he saw a group of about twenty bokoblins attacking someone.

He rushed over there, drew his sword and randomly flailed about at the closest bokoblins. The others wanted to run away when they saw their companions one by one being killed.

"And you stay here, you stupid creatures!" Ghirahim yelled, while he continued killing bokoblins.

They obeyed their master and seemingly patiently awaited their death. When Ghirahim was done killing his minions, he kneeled down beside Link.

"Sky-child," he said silently. He could see his prisoner was badly hurt and didn't have strength to react. He picked him up and carried him away to his room.

When he got there, Ghirahim carefully laid Link down on his bed and went looking for some bandage and water.

After he had found them, he sat down next to Link and laid the sky-child's head on his legs. Carefully he started cleansing the wounds. Link opened his eyes when Ghirahim started wrapping the bandage round the wounds.

"Ghi...ra..." he whispered with some difficulty.

"Shh..." Ghirahim laid his finger on Link's lips, "Don't you speak now." he said firmly.

Link smiled and closed his eyes, to fall asleep shortly after. Some time later, when Ghirahim was done taking care of Link, he brought the sky-child to the room on the left side of his. It was meant to be a guestroom, but it was hardly ever used, since Ghirahim and his master didn't get a lot of visitors.

Ghirahim dropped Link in the bed and tucked him in nice and warm. "Sleep tight," he said and he left the room.

...


	5. Chapter 5

One day had passed when Link woke up. He stared at the ceiling.

"Master..."

Link turned his head. "Fi?!" he asked surprised, "Is that really you?"

"Yes, it is, master." Fi said and she flew a little closer to the sky-child, "How are you feeling, master?" she asked.

"It still hurts, but I feel better... thanks to Ghirahim... Where is he now?"

"I can detect his aura to be in the room next to this one. But when I last had been there, there was something seriously going wrong with him, he's going insane."

Link looked worried for a moment, but that look soon disappeared. "He already was insane," he sighed.

"That's true, master."

"Fi, I have a question for you..."

"What is it, master?"

"Would you... Would you kill someone if I asked you to?"

"If that's what you wish, master."

"Go kill Ghirahim," Link said.

Fi remained silent for some time, "I can try, master, but I calculate a 85% chance I end up being killed myself. But if this is your order..." Fi flew towards the door.

"No!" Link said, "Don't kill him!"

The Sword Spirit turned back to face her master, "You wanted to test my loyalty, master? If you feel strong enough to do a battle, I recommend you to do it now. I expect a 70% chance you will succeed, given the state Ghirahim is in now."

"I don't... I'll go." Link climbed out of the bed and walked towards the door.

"Do you want me to accompany you, master?" Fi asked.

"No, thank you," Link replied, "I have to do this on my own."

"Good luck, master."

Link left the room. He clearly recognized Ghirahim's room by the sign that hung on the door. He hesitated for a moment and then slowly opened the door, trying to create as little noise as possible.

Ghirahim sat at a table, with his back turned to the door. "Go away!" he grumbled. But Link didn't go, he first had to do what he had come for.

"I told you to go away!" Ghirahim raised his voice, but he didn't sound even nearly as scaring as normally, "You stupid bokoblin! Haven't you read the sign on my door? You're not worth to enter here!"

Link walked closer to the demon lord.

"Are you deaf or something?!" Ghirahim shouted.

"I am not a bokoblin," Link said.

Ghirahim turned his head to Link, "What are _you _doing here?!" he asked surprised and angry at the same time.

"What happened to you?! Your face..." Ghirahim's face was covered in blood and he had quite a deep wound in his forehead.

"Nothing!" the Sword Spirit snarled.

Link sat down on the chair next to him and grabbed his arm.

"What do you want from me?!" Ghirahim tried to pull his arm away, but Link held it tight.

"What happened to you, Ghirahim? You can tell me, I won't hurt you."

"I... Walked into a door..."

"As if I would believe that! Fi told me you were going insane. Did you do this to yourself?"

"Fi? What does _she _know about me? It's none of her business!"

"Your master battered you, didn't he?"

"What makes you think that?!" Ghirahim said offended, "My master would never-"

Link slowly removed the glove from Ghirahim's arm.

"What are you doing?!" Ghirahim tried to stop Link, but the sky-child had already revealed several scars. The demon lord quickly looked the other way, "He didn't want to hurt me..." he said quietly.

"But he did," Link said, "And he will do it again if you revive him!"

"And he will _kill_ me if I don't! Or maybe not even kill me, but torture me for my whole further life!"

"But he won't return if you-"

"Of course he will! The seal won't keep him in the sword _forever_!"

"It will take eons before the seal breaks, and then you're long dead."

"Sword Spirits don't die of age. Ask your Fi, she will tell you the same."

"But still, you don't deserve to live a life like this."

"And what makes you care about me so suddenly? Didn't you say you wanted me dead?"

"You saved my life, Ghirahim. Everyone deserves a second chance, you know... And I believe... I believe that I can change you."

"You? Change me?" Ghirahim laughed, but only a few seconds later, he looked serious again, "My head... It hurts..."

Link carefully laid him arm around Ghirahim, "You need someone who cares about you."

"I don't need anyone..." Ghirahim muttered.

"Your master made you do things like this, didn't he?"

"Like what?" Ghirahim asked annoyed.

"Torture."

"My master tortured me, yes, and he liked it. He liked it more than anything. Bokoblins, never, but me... every day, again and again. And when I started to 'like' it, he did it even more..."

"You liked to be tortured?"

"No. I got used to it. I didn't try to get away anymore, because I knew that didn't help. My master would do it anyway, no matter how hard I struggled against it. And when I gave up trying, my master thought I liked it... He also started giving me these scars. They won't ever heal anymore. To remember me of the things I've done wrong..."

"Why won't they heal? And... What about the scars you gave to me? Are they the same as yours?"

"No, don't worry. I'm not like my master... I know what it feels like and I wouldn't do it to anyone. Not even you. Do you want to know what's the difference? My master put ashes into the wounds. They then infected and now they'll remain visible forever. That's one of the worst things my master did to me... And all those instruments of torture in the torture chamber, I've tested them all. What am I saying, I've tested them all _ten_ times. One times wasn't enough for my master, no, he had to be _sure_ they were good enough to torture bokoblins and prisoners. As if those brainless creatures are worth more than me!" Ghirahim sounded both angry and sad.

"Of course you're worth more than a bokoblin," Link tried to comfort him.

"You might think so, but my master... I've always been like a puppet in his hands, a mere toy... And I always had to like the things he liked. The same with torture. Most of the times he said I _had_ to like it, and if I didn't, I would be tortured, again. It went that way with darkness, for example. I didn't like total darkness at first, but I had to follow my master all the time. And everywhere my master came, it had to be dark. When he noticed I didn't want it to be dark when I was on my own, he made me like it. He forced me to live in total darkness for months, until I preferred it over light. But with torture, it went differently. I saw my master liked to torture that much, and so I wanted to know what it felt like. I didn't like the way my master did it though. But then he gave me a whip... And I loved it... I love whipping so much..."

"I noticed..." Link said.

"I'm sorry..." Ghirahim whispered, "Uh, wait! What did I just say?"

"You apologized!"

"No, I didn't!"

"You apologized, Ghirahim! You do have a good heart! I knew it!"

"No! I don't! Go away! You're making me say things I would never say!"

"Why are yoy telling me all this about your master, Ghirahim? You must have a reason."

Ghirahim hid his face in his hands, "I don't know... All I can tell you is that I've never told anyone before. Maybe your Fi is right about me..."

Link sighed and gave the demon a hug, "I will help you, Ghirahim, I promise."

Ghirahim turned his head to the sky-child, "You're the first one who ever hugged me... The first one who ever seemed to care about me..."

"I do care about you, but you have to promise me one thing: try to change."

Ghirahim stared at Link, "I... I'd like to, but I have to obey my master..."

"Your master can't give you orders now. You don't have to listen to _him_, listen to your heart."

"My heart says I have to follow my master, but I know he has turned my heart to stone... and... I don't want to revive him, actually... I feel better when he's not around to torture me every day. So Link... I uh... promise."

"You do? That's wonderful, Ghirahim!"

"But Link, I have to ask you one thing. Can you please ask your Fi to go away and live her own life as well? It will make things easier for me when I'm not always confronted with the life of a sword spirit. That brings back memories of my master... Do you understand?"

"I'll ask her."

"Thank you. I'm going to bed now. My head aches very much..." Ghirahim rose and stumbled to his bed, "So if you don't mind?"

"I'm going to stay here," Link said.

"Stay here? What for?"

"Because I want to keep an eye on you."

"Is that really necessary? I can look after myself, you know."

"I know, but-"

"Don't you trust me?"

"Yes, I trust you, but I don't want you to hurt yourself again."

"I didn't hurt myself."

"Your head."

"Oh that..."

"Yes, _that_. You could have died! Don't do it again."

"I just couldn't get my master out of my head... I have nightmares about his return, about him taking revenge on me because it's taking me so long... I haven't slept for days... And now I've even started having nightmares when I'm awake. I just wanted to get him out of my head..."

Link sighed, "That's not the normal way of doing things, but I can understand..."

Ghirahim lay down on his bed and crawled under the covers. Link sat down next to him, "Good night, Ghirahim."

"I wonder how long I will sleep this night..." the sword spirit sighed, "Probably just a few hours before I start having nightmares... Will you wake me up when I start acting weird?"

Link nodded and laid his hand on Ghirahim's forehead, "Are you sure I don't need to take care of this first?"

"It's not needed. It will heal on its own... Can you please go get me a drink?"

"Of course." Link walked away.

When he was gone, Ghirahim grabbed the Master Sword, that had lain next to him on the bed, and quickly hid it under his pillow. Just in case Link would change his mind about him. He wasn't planning to believe the sky-child this easily, but he hoped he would get some help in getting rid of his master.

The sky-child still was his enemy, but he had made Ghirahim realize his master had only used him. All these years, these hundreds of years, his master didn't care about him. And all the things he'd done to please Demise turned out to be wasted efforts.

That moment, Link returned, holding a glass in each of his hands. "I didn't know whether you wanted to drink water or this disgusting thing," he said to Ghirahim.

"You can give me that disgusting thing. Then you can have the water. Since you wouldn't like it to be otherwise."

"I'd hoped you wouldn't drink this disgusting thing anymore."

"You can make me leave my master, but you cannot make me stop drinking blood. I won't ask you to drink blood either. That's the same to me."

"Alright. I suppose I have to be happy you won't force me to drink blood anymore."

"But I will if you don't give it to me immediately."

Link smiled and handed Ghirahim the glass with blood. "I'm starting to like you," the sky-child said.

"You do?" Ghirahim asked in disbelief.

"I mean it. At first I only cared about you out of compassion, but now I believe we can become friends..."

"Be careful what you say, sky-child, you might regret it afterwards."

"What do you mean?" Link asked a bit worried.

Ghirahim smirked, "Believe what you want to believe, but don't be disappointed when things turn out different to what you expected."

"You mean you won't change?"

Ghirahim shrugged, "I don't know. You decide." He emptied his glass and snapped his fingers. Three of the four torches in the room extinguished. "Good night," he said and he turned his back on Link.

The sky-child sat down on a chair and stared at the demon lord, thinking about the words he'd said. He knew he wanted to become friends with Ghirahim, but did his future-friend still want to kill him?

Just one day ago, he'd have done everything to have this evil sword spirit dead, but now, all the things he'd done seemed unimportant, just because he had saved his life.

Link sighed. He didn't know what to think of Ghirahim. Why did he always have to make things so complicated? Couldn't he just say a simple 'yes' or 'no'? Was that too much to ask? Apparently, it was.

"Sometimes I still hate you..." Link mumbled, "But I wouldn't want to kill you anymore... Because... Never mind." He rose, "You aren't listening to me anyway." He sat down on the other side of the bed and looked at Ghirahim, who was already sleeping.

Link smiled, "I'm going to sleep as well," he said nd he lay down on the bed next to Ghirahim. "Good night, my friend..."

...

**_Link's too sweet and forgiving hehe XD_**

**_Hopefully next chapter will be up soon :)_**


	6. Chapter 6

**I'm so sorry for the long wait... I'm so terrible when it comes to updating. Specially because this story is already finished like 2 years... But I have to type it all on the computer and I'm just too lazy heh... XD**

* * *

In the middle of the night, Ghirahim woke up of a rattling sound. He opened his eyes and looked around. He noticed he was lying on the floor of a dark room. The walls were painted black and there were no sources of light, however he could clearly see. It was a room he had never seen before, so it couldn't be a room in the palace.

He arose and suddenly, before he even realized it, Link stood right in front of him. Ghirahim turned around, not wanting to face the child.

"Ghirahim, I want to help you," Link said, his voice sounding different, as if he was trying to hypnotize. "I want to help you...

The demon lord turned his head to look back at Link.

"I want to help you," he said once again.

"I don't need your help anymore!" Ghirahim said angrily, "It's too late! Go. Run. Run for your life."

"No! I want to stay with you. I promised. I will stay by your side until the end."

"You'll change your mind. I'm not worth the pain you'll have to suffer. Leave. Now. Before it's too late."

"It already _is_ too late." The voice of Demise.

Ghirahim froze. Link walked towards him, but the demon lord turned his back on him and bowed to his master. "Master..." he said softly, "You're... back?"

"Don't pretend nothing has happened! You're a traitor, a foolish traitor, nothing more! You're worthless! You've betrayed me, your own _master_! What kind of servant are you?!"

Ghirahim dropped to his knees, "Forgive me, master!"

"How can I possibly forgive you?!" Demise roared with anger, "All that training, all that torture, was it all wasted?! Didn't I frighten you enough?!"

"I will accept any punishment you're planning to give me... You can put me in eternal torment. I deserve it."

"No. I have some better punishment for you this time. Watch and see." Demise walked straight past Ghirahim and towards Link. He grabbed the unarmed sky-child by his shoulders, "You're going to pay, for your oh-so-sweet Ghirahim. Any last words?"

Link looked desperately at his friend, but Demise paid no heed.

"You can't do this!" the sword spirit screamed, "Punish me! Not Link!"

Demise only laughed, "I knew this would be a worse punishment for you, worse than ordinary torture. You have to feel guilty the rest of your life for the death of this so-called friend of yours! Say good-bye to him!"

Before Ghirahim had the time to do anything, his master suddenly held a knife, that had appeared out of the blue, and he stabbed the sky-child several times.

"Stop it!" Ghirahim cried, "Don't kill him!"

The demon king turned to his servant and grabbed his arm. He put the knife in the sword spirit's hand and used that hand to stab Link.

"_You_ are the one who's killed him! You have killed your own friend, the only person that ever cared for you."

Ghirahim closed his eyes and screamed as loud as he could. When he opened his eyes again, he looked straight into those of Link.

"Finally!" the sky-child said, "I couldn't wake you up, and you were screaming and everything. You seriously frightened me!"

"Was... Was it a dream...?"

"It's alright now..." Link gave him a hug, "Nothing happened."

"See, I told you I would have nightmares again."

"About your master? He killed someone?"

"How do you know?"

"You were screaming something like 'don't kill him'."

"Yes... He killed you."

"Me?" Link sounded genuinely surprised when he heard that.

"Yes. Or, better yet, he killed you with my hand. It was a nightmare... But anyway, I don't understand why I cared about it that much...In reality I wouldn't care that much."

"Stop pretending already! Just admit that you care about me. We both know it, so there's no use denying it, right?"

"I don't pretend..."

"Of course you do! I'm positive you care about me. If you didn't care, then why would you have saved my life? Why would you have healed my wounds? Why would you talk to me about your problems? Stop pretending! Your master doesn't know this! And he would have noticed it too, anyway. There is no point in denying anymore."

"And what would make me like you then? Hmm? I have absolutely no reason to like you. And oh, if you were wondering why I kept you alive, remember that I need the spirit maiden to come over here?"

Link sighed deeply, "Maybe you like me because you need my help?"

"I don't need your help! It would be handy to get some, yes, but I don't _need_ it!"

Link sighed once again, but wasn't given the time to reply.

"And get out of my bed!" Ghirahim yelled, "You aren't supposed to be here, get out!"

The sky-child climbed out of the bed, "You're just upset because of that dream. And do you know why? Because you care about me. Because you don't want to lose me."

"Enough of this! Go away!"

"Ghirahim..."

The demon lord grabbed the Master Sword and pointed it at Link, "Go away, or..."

"You're totally shaking, Ghirahim. If you're trying to frighten me, well this doesn't work."

Ghirahim sighed and dropped the Sword. "I surrender. You've won, alright?! I do need your help, because I'm weak, I'm worthless, I'm-"

"Stop that!"

"Are you happy now, sky-child? Is this what you wanted?!"

Link sat down next to the sword spirit and laid his arm around him. "No. I don't want you to feel bad, not at all. I just want you to be happy."

"But I was happy! I was perfectly happy until you turned up here and made a mess of my life!"

"Until you realized what you were living for. For nothing. For a master that doesn't care about you even one bit."

"I know... And you're right. You're right about everything. I need to stop denying everything you say, because it's all true... I'd hoped you would help me, I hoped you weren't just trying to fool me, I hoped you wouldn't want to kill me anymore..."

"Like I have already said before, I mean everything I said to you. Every single word. And I can understand your doubts. I hated you, most of everything in the world, but then... You saved my life and when I heard about your past... I felt so sorry for you and I want to do everything to help you in return for saving me."

"Thank you, sky-child..."

"Call me Link, please."

"Thank you, Link. If you want to excuse me now, I have to hide the Master Sword somewhere. That will make it easier for me to forget about my master."

"That fits in very well. Then I have the time to go to Fi and ask her to leave."

"Perfect."

Together they left the room and separated in the hallway. "See you later," Link said as he opened the door of the guestroom.

"Master!" Fi flew towards him immediately, "Have you defeated him? Is he dead?"

"Fi, there's something I need to tell you..."

"Yes, Master?"

"Uhm... Can you leave this place? There's still a few things I need to sort out before I can go as well. Just go as far as possible, I will come later. Don't wait for me."

"Are there problems, master? You did kill Ghirahim, didn't you?"

"Well... Not exactly, but he isn't the problem. It's his master. There are some sort of problems with the seal and it's safer for you when you're not too close to the Master Sword. When I'm sure the seal isn't in danger anymore, I will come and look for you."

"And after you've killed Ghirahim."

"Uh... Yes. Go now, Fi. Go as far as you want to go and don't let anyone stop you, not Zelda, not Impa, not _anyone_. This is my last order for you, Fi, I'm no longer your master. Goodbye. And don't wait for me."

Fi didn't reply to her master for a long time, but then she spoke again, "You will always be my master to me, but if you have decided to dismiss me as your servant, I can't do anything but accept it. Goodbye, master. May we meet again." After those words, Fi left, leaving Link to stand alone in the room.

Link stared after the blue sword spirit as she left, his eyes filling with tears. The first time they had said goodbye felt better. This didn't feel right, not at all. But he had done it for Ghirahim. He had to do something in return, something to prove he really cared for the demon.

He walked through the hallway in the direction Fi had gone. He wanted to find the exit of the palace. If he could find Zelda, he could ask her to help him. It sure would be easier to change Ghirahim when more people wanted to help him, when more people showed they cared about him.

About half an hour later, he saw two giant doors, fully opened and showing the outside world. The exit! It was a lot easier to find when you didn't have to flee. Link quickened his pace. Freedom, at last... But he didn't want to be free... He had, no, he _wanted_ to return to the palace later.

He looked around. He hadn't seen this place before, but it was certainly beautiful. It was magnificent. He didn't expect a garden like this to be property of Demise. And there, right in front of him, stood none other than Zelda. She was looking the other way. Probably Fi had just gone that way.

"Zelda!" Link called.

Zelda turned around and when she noticed Link, she immediately ran towards him. "Link!" She hugged him. "You're back! You can't believe how much I've missed you! When Fi passed by, I feared something bad had happened, but-" She interrupted her sentence when she looked at Link's face, "What's this?!"

"What's what?" Link asked, confused.

"These... scars!"

"Oh... that."

"Did he do this to you?"

"Yes..."

"Is he coming after you?"

"I don't think so."

"Come on then! We need to get away from here, before he knows I'm here!" Zelda tugged at his arm to make him come along but Link refused.

"No," he said.

"What? Why not?" She let go of his arm, "Why, Link?"

"I want to stay here."

"Why? To get caught and be hurt again?!"

"He won't hurt me anymore..."

"Who says? He? And you believe him?"

"He's going to change. And I want to help him."

"You believe him?!" Zelda repeated.

"Yes. I'm going to help him."

"What has he done to you, Link?! What kind of poison has he given to you?!"

"Nothing, Zelda. Keep calm!"

"He must have brainwashed you or something. He sent you out to catch me, didn't he?"

"No, Zelda! He's not like that! Not anymore. And I was hoping to get some help from you."

"To help him? Never! He tried to sacrifice me for his master, and he's still trying! I don't want to kill myself!"

"He doesn't want to revive his master anymore!"

"Now I understand why Fi left so hastily... You're mad. You're just as mad as Ghirahim is. Well, you fit together, you two! I hate you!" Zelda ran away and disappeared in the bushes.

"Zeldaa!" Link shouted, but she didn't return. He sighed. He hoped she would return when she got back to her senses. Link entered the palace again. He didn't want to be alone now, or he would start to cry. Maybe he had just lost his best friend... And he knew Ghirahim couldn't replace Zelda. Or Fi. Maybe he had done the wrong thing...

He walked through the palace. It was a total maze. It would be a miracle if he could manage to find the room he came from, or if he could find Ghirahim.

Link sighed, "Ghirahim!" he screamed. Nothing happened, except from a bokoblin that came running towards him.

"Go find your master!" Link ordered.

"But we flee for master. Master not himself..."

"What's wrong with him?" Link asked worried.

"He kill us. That why I come here. We try escape. He kill us all!" The bokoblin ran away.

"Hey! Wait! Where is he?" Link asked.

"He come here."

Link sighed and ran the way the bokoblin had come from. He didn't have to go far before he saw Ghirahim, totally covered in blood.

"Oh, it's you, sky-, Link I mean. I almost thought you were a bokoblin." He smiled at Link.

"What have you done?!" Link asked angrily.

"Oh... Some bokoblins were being irritating. They couldn't understand I wanted to leave my master. They started to revolt against it and thus I killed them. You should be happy, I did it for you. Now you can be sure I do want to leave my master."

"You shouldn't do this kind of things anymore! It doesn't suit you!"

"Oh yes it does, it suits me very well! Everyone knows I love bloodshed, so what suits me better?"

Link turned away from the demon, "I don't like that! You said you were going to change. Well you haven't changed yet if you ask me. And you aren't even trying to. If you want me to help you, you can at least do this in return!"

"If you want to be friends with me, you need to accept me as I am."

"Alright. We've said enough. I was wrong to think I could change you. How can I change someone who doesn't want to do something about it? You've ruined my life, Ghirahim! I'm going to leave. Goodbye!"

"Wait!" Ghirahim ran to Link, grabbed him by his shoulders and turned him around, "What do you mean, I've ruined your life?"

"I saw Zelda. I doubt she ever wants to see me again now!"

"Zelda? Where?"

"That doesn't matter! But I told her about you, I told her you had changed, because I believed in you!"

"What did she say?"

"What do you think?! She said I'm mad! She hates me! It's all your fault! I've lost my best friend because of you!"

Ghirahim stared at the floor, "I didn't want her to leave you..."

"Oh sure you didn't! I think you planned all of this! I hate you!"

"I thought we were friends now..."

"You thought we were friends? I thought you didn't want to be friends with me?"

"I do want it! And I want to try to change! And I didn't want Zelda to be mad at you! Please, Link, believe me!"

"It's alright... Where would I go anyway if I would leave you? I have no one left here on the surface. And I can't leave you alone either. I suppose we need each other..."

"Actually, we don't."

"We could still live separately and be enemies."

"But we won't."

"I'm glad you say so."

"Come on." Ghirahim laid his arm around Link, "Let's leave this place. Do you know anywhere to go to?"

"I'd say my house in the Faron Woods, but you've burnt it down. Then we could go to Skyloft, but they wouldn't appreciate it if I were to take you there. Another possibility is the Eldin Volcano, but it's too hot to live there for long. So that means the only place that's left, is the Lanayru Desert. It still is a dry place, but in the past, it's a perfect place to live."

"The Lanayru Desert? Shall I teleport us there?"

"Not yet. First we have to put the Master Sword back in its pedestal and hope the seal will restore."

"Good idea, but I don't think resealing it will do much good. The seal will break very soon. Putting it back will only extend the revival of my master a few days, a week at most."

"And... How long do you think it will take before your master breaks free?"

"That's hard to say. A week, two weeks, a month perhaps? I don't know, but I can feel he's regaining strength. In fact, he still needs the spirit maiden's soul to be at full strength, but it's possible that that is no longer necessary..."

"Why not? Wasn't she the one thing that was needed for him to revive?"

"After the first imprisoning, yes. But this time the goddess didn't transform my master into a monster before she imprisoned him, did she?"

"I don't think so. He didn't transform into his 'imprisoned' form..."

"He will return the way he has gone. I wasn't there this time, but the first time he was imprisoned, I had seen it all happening. The goddess said to him he would return in the form he had been in when he was imprisoned. And if he wasn't in his monstrous form, what you call 'the imprisoned', he will return in his demon form."

"In his human-like form?"

"We aren't human."

"Your master isn't, but you..."

"I'm not human! Don't ever call me that, unless you want me to be angry! I am a demon, not a human. And I don't like to be compared to those weak creatures!"

"Aren't you forgetting something? I am a human."

"Oh... Yes, well, you are an exception then. Let's go now. And keep your Master Sword with you. You need it when we have to fight my master. If you'd first have to go and get the Sword in the Sealed Temple, it would be a disadvantage to us. I'm going to get the Sword, and when I'm back, we'll set off to the Desert." Ghirahim snapped his fingers and disappeared.

"And what if I don't agree?" Link said to himself. He still had his doubts about his 'friendship' with Ghirahim, but he believed the demon lord was telling the truth about his feelings towards his master. He still hoped Zelda would return, but he feared she wouldn't. They almost never argued and Zelda seemed to be sure he was cursed. And what would make her want to help someone cursed? Nothing. He had lost her...

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